This application claims the priorities of German applications 102 18 250.7, filed Apr. 24, 2002, and 102 56 721.2, filed Dec. 5, 2002, the disclosures of which are expressly incorporated by reference herein.
The present invention relates to a sign for a vehicle that comprises a three-dimensional base equipped with an opaque surface coating, wherein the backside of the sign is placed and attached to a vehicle part. The invention also concerns a process of using such a sign.
Signs of the above-mentioned kind are conventionally manufactured from aluminum or opaque plastic and equipped with a continuous opaque surface coating. Attachment of the signs to a specified vehicle part in the passenger compartment or on the vehicle exterior occurs through adhesion, clipping, screwing, or in similar ways. Such signs have the disadvantage that they can no longer be recognized at dawn or dusk or in the dark.
One object of the invention is to make such provisions to a sign that it can also be recognized at dawn or dusk or in the dark.
This object is achieved according to the invention by way of an indirect lighting device with which the sign is equipped. The dependent claims contain further features that provide beneficial designs of the invention.
Advantages achieved through the invention include creation of a sign with virtual indirect lighting which, on one hand, can be recognized at dawn or dusk or in the dark and, on the other hand, does not blind other drivers. Signs arranged on the vehicle exterior contribute to increased safety since broken-down vehicles can be recognized more quickly in the dark. Additionally, the lighted signs represent an aesthetically appealing design. The lighted signs include a three-dimensional base made of translucent plastic such as ABS or polycarbonate and have a galvanized or painted surface coating on which at least one peripheral side contour is formed through the local use of a laser on the surface coating. The contour has a small width. A hollow cylinder is molded to the backside of the sign to hold a light-emitting diode, wherein the light-emitting diode is connected to a power source. The power source for the sign can be activated when switching on the headlights, when turning on the side clearance lamps, when braking, or in similar fashions so that easier identification of the vehicle manufacturer or vehicle type is guaranteed even in the dark.
A design of the invention is depicted in the drawing and is more closely described in the following.